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*Press Release* - BCT & Opera Idaho present: All is Calm

  • Arts Boise
  • 4 days ago
  • 6 min read

New Twists for A Holiday Favorite at Boise Contemporary Theater


November 17, 2025 - Boise, ID – Moving Holiday docu-musical, All is Calm: The Christmas Truce of 1914 comes back to Boise Contemporary Theater [BCT] for a third time in cooperation with Opera Idaho and poses the question, “Could it really have happened like this? If all the troops along the line had refused to fight, on both sides, would the war have ended then and there?” Previews begin Wednesday, December 3, and shows continue through Saturday, December 20, 2025.


All is Calm: The Christmas Truce of 1914, which won a 2019 Drama Desk Award for Unique Theatrical Experience, is a moving remembrance of the moment when a World War I German soldier laid down his gun, climbed out of the muddy trenches and walked into the barbed-wire-filled “No Man’s Land” that divided both sides to sing “Stille Nacht” for Christmas Eve. Thus, in an unofficial truce, men from both fronts followed to trade songs, tobacco, and wine, making a spontaneous holiday celebration that even included a game of football. Told through the words of the great World War I poets, official war documents, diary entries, and letters written by more than thirty soldiers, their words are punctuated by Irish folk tunes, wartime songs, and holiday classics like "Silent Night" and "O Holy Night." This production welcomes Isaiah Rasch in his BCT/Opera Idaho debut with the returning cast of Willis Carr, Curtis Crafton, Gus Curry, David Kepner, Brock MacDonald, Francisco Negron, Ethan Graham Roeder, Jeffrey Seppala, and Tim Stoddard as they bring to life this “BCT collaboration with Opera Idaho [that] is a stunning, electrifying tour-de-force. I dare you not to have chills, for your eyes not to tear up. …It all unfolds through actual letters and firsthand accounts punctuating the story. The songs will lift you up and carry you away… to another place, another time, when life was hard, yet somehow more simple.” -Jeanne Huff, Boise Weekly.


Producing Artistic Director Benjamin Burdick added, “Since we first brought All Is Calm to the BCT stage in conjunction with Opera Idaho in 2021, audiences have been clamoring for its return. And we certainly understand why. Between Tracy's imaginative staging, Michael's precise musical direction and the talent of the actors to carry out both, it's truly breathtaking. Throw in the true story from WWI, and the historical letters and journal entries from soldiers on both sides, it becomes something not to be missed.”


New this season, Boise Contemporary Theater has partnered with The Avery Bar + Brasserie on Main to offer BCT patrons exclusive prix fixe dinners and prix fixe brunches on select show dates. Brunches are $35 per guest (not including drinks) and are offered Saturday, December 13 and 20 from noon to 1:30 pm, just in time for matinee performances of All is Calm! Opening Night dinner is $80 per guest (not including drinks) on Saturday, December 6, from 4:45-6:15 pm, just in time for the 7:00 pm Opening Night performance.


Especially for this production of All is Calm, local artist and recently retired College of Idaho Art Professor Garth Claassen has created a new work of art for his installation in the lobby of Boise Contemporary Theater, on display during the run of this Holiday musical. A free and open to the public Artist Reception will be held during BCT’s First Thursday Happy Hour event from 5:30-6:30 pm on Thursday, December 4, 2025, for viewing Garth Claassen’s art and enjoying discounts on drinks and tickets to All is Calm.


Production Details:


All is Calm: The Christmas Truce of 1914


  • by Peter Rothstein

  • Vocal Arrangements by Erick Lichte & Timothy C. Takach

  • Directed by Tracy Sunderland

  • Musical Direction by Opera Idaho’s Critical Mass Vocal Artists Director, Dr. C. Michael Porter


December 3-20, 2025


Cast:


Willis Carr

Curtis Crafton

Gus Curry*

David Kepner

Brock MacDonald

Francisco Negron

Isaiah Rasch

Ethan Graham Roeder

Jeffrey Seppala

Tim Stoddard*


Production and Design Team:


Director – Tracy Sunderland

Music Director – Dr. C. Michael Porter

Stage Manager – Elena Maddy

Assistant Stage Manager – Tris Berg

Technical Director – Nicholas Jules Hewitt

Costume Designer – Chanté Thornton Hamann

Lighting Designer – Brandon Washington

Sound Designer – Luke Santy

Dialect Coach – Joe Conley Golden*

Master Electrician – Paul Miller

Assistant Master Electrician – Kendyl Johnson

Sound Engineer/Sound Board Operator – Brayden Buckley


*Members of Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.


Previews: Dec. 3, 4, and 5 at 7:00 pm – ALL Seats Only $28!


First Thursday Happy Hour: 5:30-6:30 pm, Thursday, Dec. 4 – Join us for an Artist Reception for Garth Claassen, local artist, and recently retired Art Professor at The College of Idaho. Enjoy a brand new piece made specifically for this installation! Only at our box office during this event, get tickets to any preview performance (even that night) for just $20, or 20% off tickets to any regular performance of this play (excluding opening and closing night). Join us for charcuterie, discounts on tap beers from Lost Grove and Woodland Empire, and wines generously provided by Hayden Beverage.


Opening Night & After Party: Saturday, Dec. 6 at 7:00 pm – Your ticket to this first official performance gets you into the exclusive after party to celebrate Opening Night with us at BCT! Want to enjoy dinner before the show? Avery Bar + Brasserie will host an exclusive prix fixe dinner for BCT patrons from 4:45 – 6:15 PM on Dec. 6th, donating 10% of each check back to BCT, so you can support the theater you love while enjoying a fantastic meal before Opening Night. Learn how to RSVP: https://bctheater.org/avery-pre-fixe-dining/


Educators’ Night: Wednesday, Dec. 10 at 7:00 pm – Any school district employee with a valid school I.D. may buy one ticket at 50% off through our box office with code EDUNIGHT26. Show school I.D. at the door. (Not just for teachers, but any school district employee with a valid school I.D.).


Post-Show Convos: Stay to talk with the actors & designers after the 2:00 pm Saturday, Dec. 13 matinee & the 7:00 pm Friday, Dec. 19 show!


For more information, please visit:







About Boise Contemporary Theater


Boise Contemporary Theater (BCT) is a professional nonprofit theater company in Boise, Idaho, whose mission is to inspire our community to examine our perspectives and better understand ourselves, each other, and the world around us by creating thought-provoking stories of the human experience. Founded in 1997, BCT is the only nonprofit professional theater within 300 miles dedicated to producing challenging new work. BCT is a recipient of the Mayor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts, a two-time recipient of the National Theater Company Award from the American Theater Wing, and the 2022-23 City of Boise Cultural Ambassador. Currently in its 28th season, BCT has presented over 100 MainStage productions, including over 25 world premieres such as Eric Coble’s The Velocity of Autumn, which continued to Broadway. The annual BIPOC Playwrights Festival, launched in 2021, furthers a commitment to presenting diverse new voices. BCT’s education program, A.C.T. at BCT, strives to reach a broad audience representative of the surrounding community, serving over 2,000 students through outreach Theater Lab programs that include underserved schools with high populations of low-income, at-risk, and refugee students and onsite classes in which students conceive, write, produce, and perform in their own original productions.


About Opera Idaho


Opera Idaho has been producing opera in the Treasure Valley for nearly 50 years. In recent years, growing support has given Opera Idaho the ability to become one of the broadest-reaching arts organizations in Idaho and one of the fastest-growing opera companies in the U.S. We have increased our presence throughout the State of Idaho by taking productions and programs to Pocatello, Ketchum, Moscow, and McCall. From 2014 to 2020, the number of people we reached grew by 15% on average. In the 2019-2020 season, we reached over 43,000 people through our performances, education engagement programs, children’s choruses, and involvement in community activities. In the 2020-21 season, though unable to perform on the main stage, through small, socially distanced events and a digital education offering, we were still able to reach over 23,000 people throughout Idaho. Last season, we reached over 28,500 people, and this season we expect to be back to pre-pandemic numbers.

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